POLICE SEEK TO ARREST UNION LADER AS TEACHERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 000082

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

AF/S FOR S. HILL
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR B. PITTMAN
USAID FOR M. COPSON AND E. LOKEN
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU
ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/02/2017
TAGS: PHUM ELAB ZI
SUBJECT: POLICE SEEK TO ARREST UNION LADER AS TEACHERS
STRIKE LOOMS

REF: HARARE 0007

Classified By: Ambassador Christopher Dell undr Section 1.5 b/d


1. (C) Summary. On February 1police conducted an early
morning raid on the hoe of Raymond Majongwe, Secretary
General of the rogressive Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe
(PTUZ),toarrest the outspoken labor leader. According toZimbabwe Lawyers for
Human Rights (ZLHR),Majongwewas not
home at the time and police threatened t detain his wife in
order to compel Majongwe to turn himself in. This incident
comes a day after PTUZ called for a "go-slow" campaign and
threatened a national strike if the government did not meet
demands to increase teachers' salary. End Summary.

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Police React to Threat of a Strike
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2. (C) Around 0500 on February 1 police conducted a raid on
the home of Raymond Majongwe, the outspoken Secretary General
of PTUZ. According to ZLHR, Majongwe was not home at the
time and police threatened to arrest his wife in order to
compel him to turn himself in at Harare Central Police
Station by 0800. Contacts at ZLHR told us that Majongwe was
in a safe house with no plans to comply with the order, at
least today. (Note: Police typically arrest civil society
activists on a Thursday and hold them over the weekend as a
standard form of harassment. End Note.)


3. (U) The attempted arrest comes one day after PTUZ
announced a phased escalation strategy to compel the
government to meet demands for a minimum monthly package for
teachers of Z$650,000 (about US$130.00 at the market exchange
rate),consisting of a basic salary of Z$400,000 (about
US$80.00),a transportation allowance of Z$100,000 (about
US$20.00),and a housing allowance of Z$150,000 (about
US$30.00). The Z$400,000 basic salary sought is only
slightly above the poverty datum line, the minimum monthly
amount required to meet basic needs for an average family of
five currently set by the government at Z$389,000 (about
US$77.00). An entry level teacher currently earns Z$84,000
per month and a senior level teacher earns Z$250,000 per
month (about US$16.00 and US$50.00, respectively). Other
PTUZ demands include providing teachers free Antiretroviral
(ARV) drugs and housing that meets minimum health standards.


4. (C) Majongwe said in a meeting with poloffs on January 31
that the go-slow campaign had started that morning, and PTUZ
had received reports that five schools in Bulawayo, a
traditional opposition stronghold, had been paralyzed.
According to Majongwe, the phased strategy consists of the
go-slow campaign, in which teachers would spend most of their
time in school staff rooms rather than teaching, and then a
stay-away strike.

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Willing To Go It Alone*But Hoping For Support
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5. (C) Majongwe told poloffs that of the 120,000 teachers in
the country (the largest group of civil servants),the more
"militant" PTUZ represents over 17,000. He believed the PTUZ
labor action had strong support from teachers throughout the
country, but noted that representatives of the 55,000 member

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Zimbabwe Teachers Association (ZIMTA),characterized by PTUZ
as "government-friendly," were actively dissuading its
members from participating. Paradoxically, according to
PTUZ, the 1,000 member Zimbabwe Teacher's Union (ZTU),which
is part of the "government-affiliated" Zimbabwe Federation of
Trade Unions (ZFTU),is honoring PTUZ's request not to
actively challenge this latest labor action. Further,
PTUZ,s parent organization Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
(ZCTU) had not responded to a request for support.


6. (C) Despite the apparent lack of support from the broader
labor movement, Majongwe was guardedly optimistic PTUZ,s
action could create momentum for opposition to the government
within the labor movement and civil society. He noted that
the USAID-funded Studio 7 program, listened to on
USAID-donated radios, was the primary means of getting the
word out. Majongwe said he hoped that a widespread teachers'
strike, in combination with the ongoing doctors and nurses'
strike, could be the spark that sets-off wider protests
against the government.

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Comment
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7. (C) Like much of the opposition, the teachers are divided
and not yet working together. PTUZ,s success may ultimately
depend on Majongwe,s ability to reach out to ZIMTA and ZCTU.
Nevertheless, the government, as demonstrated by its attempt
to arrest Majongwe, is clearly worried. This comes several
days after the arrest of Christian Alliance leaders (reftel)
and further demonstrates the government,s intent to suppress
any and all public protest.
DELL